Honey

Honey History

Since ancient times, honey has been used as both a food and a medicine. In “not so” ancient times, my grandma, “Martha” Wundrow and grandpa, “Leo” Wundrow, when not tending to their Brown Swiss dairy cows, would spend daylight hours in the woods. Grandpa’s saw mill along with his bee hives were two personal passions of my grandfather. I remember my uncle and him all covered in the white bee armor and grandma soaking old pieces of clothing from her sewing cabinet with oils for the smoke puffer. Grandpa would trudge through the tall grass and thickets to get to the clearing under the tall pines where the hives sat perpendicular to a carpet of pine needles like little castles. Grandpa, like a surgeon, would dismantle these towers and extract the honey and scrape it away from the combs…always leaving enough for the bees to eat through the winter. Later, grandma would spread this raw chunky sweet paste on my toast.

Grandma told me about the “Queen” that lived in this “white vertical castle” along with an army of “drones” with complete allegiance to her. Outside the “royal quarters” were thousands of peasant “worker bees” that were all necessary to running her “Queendom”. In this “buzzing” economy that operates 24/7 with worker bees that never sleep, there is one goal; make honey all for the propagation of the queen’s lineage. These stinging servants travel miles a day from flower to flower tirelessly gathering the nectar. As a small child, it was like a fairy tale as grandma explained in great detail how these bee societies flourished in harmony with the seasons and nature. Now, as an adult farmer whose livelihood depends on the proper pollination of my plants, I only find these creatures even more fascinating.

It is becoming more and more challenging for these pollinators to survive as they have not changed much in 20 million years however the world around them has. At Wunberg Produce, we do everything in our power to promote healthy and chemical-free areas for bees. We welcome bees and promote bees and all the other pollinating insects. It is important to remember that when you get produce from Wunberg Produce you might find a “bug” and when you do just remember we use NO pesticides for your and our bees HEALTH. As we continue to expand our patches and orchards we will need more bees than ever to pollinate our plants. This means we will have lots of WUNBERG HONEY.

“The average worker bee produces only about 1/12th teaspoon of honey in her lifetime. Doesn’t this fact make you love every drop of honey?”

In my weekly outings, as I go before the general public I am asked many questions about our farm and products; however, I asked more about our WUNBERG HONEY than any other product. People have a strong interest in “local honey” as they should. With this interest comes strong varied opinions by producers and consumers, public misconceptions, and inconsistent supplier representation of Raw vs. Pure Honey. Much of this information is subjective and rooted in each person personal opinion and values. I am going to speak as a farmer who considers animal/bee welfare, efficiency with little waste in harvest, and most importantly a quality pure end product that meets safety standards for human consumption.

It all begins at the Hive

In my mind, if you want true “Raw” honey, then it would be basically scraped off the comb which includes bits and pieces of bees and chunks of wax like I used to lick off grandpa’s knife. This is what some consumers desire. In my mind that would be “raw” honey. If that is the kind of honey you desire, our honey is not for you. I will be transparent and present you with some facts and personal experience and allow you to decide if our honey is right for you. I will tell you exactly how it is produced.

It all begins at the hive. Wunberg Honey comes from hives around our farm and several area farms in the Stateline area. Wunberg Honey now is processed in an old school house converted into a licensed “processing plant.” In the extracting room at the plant, the process has remained the same since 1963 although most of the machines have been updated. The honey is extracted by the traditional processes. The full frames (honey combs) are put through the uncapper to remove the wax cappings from the comb’s cells. Frames are then placed in the extractor where centrifugal force removes the honey from the combs. The honey flows through a screen. This separates and removes the chunks of wax from the honey. The honey is then pumped into a holding tank and warmed to about 85 degrees.

The honey is NOT pasteurized (heated to 110 degrees) but it is heated to 85 degrees so it can flow and not leave waste in kettles during the bottling process. Please note that in the hive during the summer it can be as hot as 120 to 130 degrees in some areas of the hive. Our honey does go through a screen to remove “chunks.” We do not overheat, pressure filter, or add anything to Wunberg Honey. It is 100% natural using the same process since 1948.

Our honey will crystalize sooner, about 8 months, due to the fact that it is not pasteurized. Gentle heating will bring it to a clear state, but it will crystalize again as it cools. This does not make it less safe to eat, it only changes the texture and some people prefer this. Honey poses a natural antibacterial quality that still mystifies researchers today. Honey does not need to be refrigerated. Containers of honey have been found in the tombs of Pharaohs. It has a long shelf life one could say! Should you get honey from us and it crystalizes before you open it, please return it for a free replacement.